Fassie hit: Singer cries foul
2005-07-01 10:44
Port Elizabeth - It seems the dust just can't settle around South Africa's controversial songbird Brenda Fassie.
Melvyn Matthews, a singer/songwriter and former colleague of Fassie, is reportedly crying foul over two songs he penned for the famous singer.
Matthews told Die Burger in a recent interview that while the late Fassie established herself as a star in the music world, he had to sell milk to stay alive.
He said he wasn't aware that Fassie would release the song and was stunned when he saw the video on television for the first time.
"In Brenda's entire music career, she gave me only R50 although she admitted to people that she became famous with my song," Matthews said.
But Fassie former record label EMI has a different take on Matthews' version.
Matthews said he wrote the music and words to Fassie's hit Weekend Special in 1983 and later composed Life Is Going On with Dumisani Ngubeni.
However, EMI said Matthews only wrote the words and he signed a deed of assignment in 1983.
EMI Music Publishing's Managing Director, Robbie Kallenbach, told News24 that Matthews had been receiving his share of the royalties since 1983 and even obtained advances.
"In addition to the normal payments of royalties to him,
he had on a number of occasions during these years requested and
obtained advances from our company..." Kallenbach wrote in an e-mail to News24.
Matthews reportedly contacted EMI shortly after Fassie's funeral in 2004. In February 2005 EMI provided Matthews and his lawyers with accounting records regarding the two songs, but to date has not received a response from Matthews nor his lawyers.
EMI said it has complied with all reasonable accounting procedures and requests and does not know what else it can do to satisfy Matthews.
Matthews has shared the stage with international stars such as The Manhattans and Stevie Wonder as well as local stars such as Mbongeni Ngema and Dr Victor & The Rasta Rebels. He also wrote songs for Steve Kekana.
Before Fassie became famous with Weekend Special, she and Matthews were the lead singers in a band called The Family.
Matthews even dedicated the song Where will you be to Fassie at her funeral. Fassie died of a drug overdose in Johannesburg last year.